Syria's besieged E. Ghouta appeals to Turkey for help

Local council calls on Turkish president to help end Assad regime's five-year siege of district

By Esref Musa

IDLIB, Syria/ANKARA, Turkey (AA) - The local council of Syria's besieged Eastern Ghouta district on Thursday called on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to help end the Assad regime’s five-year siege of the district.

"Since you [Erdogan] have influence on the Islamic community and the international area, we call on you to take urgent action to protect civilians and pressure the [Assad] regime and its Iranian militia supporters,” read a statement released by the council.

"As the people of Eastern Ghouta, we wish you to intervene in quickly," it added.

The council went on to point out that the ongoing siege had particularly affected women and children.

Over the last three days, the regime has reportedly carried out 260 separate attacks in Eastern Ghouta, killing more than 250 civilian residents of the district.

Home to some 400,000 people, Eastern Ghouta has remained under a crippling regime siege for the last five years, bringing it to the verge of humanitarian catastrophe.

Syria has been locked in a devastating conflict since early 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.

According to UN officials, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in the conflict to date.